Weekend update as promised! Feel free to follow me on Twitter iShipDarvey and I'll follow back. As always thank you sooo much for the reviews!
Frowning slightly, Donna pushed back her hair with her sunglasses and rested her arm against the window. The clear, cold glass instantly chilled her hot skin as her eyes focused on the road watching the steady flow of traffic that lay ahead. The highway was busy and full of travellers that somehow all seemed to be heading in their direction which of course meant that their journey had been slowed down considerably to the point where they were practically sitting at a standstill. So this meant that they were running extremely late, in fact considerably later than when they had set off this morning. Of course this had prompted Harvey to curse loudly on a number of occasions.
Donna's lips upturned into a smile as she turned her head to glance at him. His thick arm rested on the open window frame as his fingers lightly drummed against the steering wheel in time to the music. His white cotton t-shirt strained against the size of his bicep and she found herself staring in admiration. Sitting in such close proximity to Harvey made her realise how big he actually was and there was no doubt he definitely worked out and obviously looked after himself both in and out the gym.
As Donna's eyes travelled to where his fingers drummed a beat, she thought that she'd never seen a guy with such nice hands and nails in her life before and she found herself wondering if they felt as soft as they looked.
"Christ, my mom is going to kill me." said Harvey before pushing back his hair and shifting in his seat.
Donna couldn't help but let out a chuckle and all thoughts about his hands were momentarily forgotten as she caught the slightly perplexed expression on his face. An expression which shifted into amusement as Harvey glanced at her before turning his attention back to the road.
"It's no laughing matter, you know. She's going to kick my ass." he told her.
"Well, maybe you should have dragged that ass out of bed an hour earlier and then you wouldn't currently be in fear of your life."
Harvey looked at her once more and smirked. "Are you trying to get smart with me, Paulsen?"
Donna's eyes glinted at him playfully as she lifted her shoulder in a shrug. "Maybe I'm just telling you the truth. And the truth is your lazy ass is the reason why we're late."
His deep throaty laughter filled the car and Donna found her heart suddenly skipping a beat as his wide grin worked its way through her. She quickly turned back round towards the front of the silver Expedition taking a second to catch her breath as her eyes travelled over the polished dashboard in front of her.
"So, this is a nice truck." she commented. "How much does one of these set you back?"
"I don't know. I think this was about fifty thousand."
Donna's eyes went wide as she shifted in her seat to stare back at him in disbelief. "Fifty thousand bucks!? For a car!?"
Harvey nodded and smiled, amused at her reaction. "That's nothing. I got a Lamborghini in my garage that cost me two hundred."
She found herself picking her mouth from the ground. "Two hundred thousand dollars? Jesus Christ, Harvey. That's a lot of money for a car."
She paused for a second letting her mind try to fathom it all out.
"So tell me. Is it gold plated or something?" she asked.
"No. But it goes really fast." Harvey's mouth upturned with his grin which he flashed in her direction, his brown eyes sparkling with his obvious delight as they pulled to another standstill. "Like really, really fast."
Donna shook her head, amused by the excitement she could hear in his voice. "I don't know. Boys and your damn toys."
He chuckled and was just about to reply when his cell phone began to ring. He picked it up from the dash and groaned audibly when he saw the caller display. "Christ! Here we go."
He pressed the button placing it to his ear.
"Hello mother." he said cheerily.
Donna watched Harvey roll his eyes at her as he listened to the voice at the other end.
"I know, I know. But we're only about ten minutes away."
Her own eyes went wide with disbelief at that statement. They were currently travelling at a snail's pace. They would be lucky to make it to the end of this stretch in ten minutes never mind the five miles they had left until they finally got to Worcester.
"Yes. I know I'm over an hour late Mom."
She watched him scratch his head and lightly smack his right hand against the steering wheel.
"It's not my fault. The traffic is fucking awful."
His nose instantly crinkled into a scowl which Donna realised she found extremely cute.
"Okay, I'm sorry. I'll wash my mouth out with soap when we get there."
She couldn't help but snort out loud as she tried to control her laughter. Harvey's hand lifted off the steering wheel to swat at her arm playfully.
"Yes, Donna's here."
He shook his head as he placed his hand back on the steering wheel.
"Oh, I'm sure she can't wait to meet you too. Especially after hearing you chew my ear off just now."
Harvey bit down on his lip and sniffed as the cars in front of them finally began to move. "Ma, I need to go. I'll see you in a bit."
He paused as he began to drive the car slowly forward.
"Just go ahead and we'll join you when we get there." he told her before glancing at Donna and flipping her a wink before turning his attention back to the road.
Donna couldn't help the slow grin that crept across her face or the warmth she could feel pool in the pit of her stomach.
"Okay. Bye Mom."
Harvey sighed loudly as he hung up the call throwing his phone down on the dash before reaching to turn up the volume on the cd player as they slowly began to pick up a little speed.
"You know she's a nagging old soul but she means well."
Donna's mouth curved up gently hearing the obvious affection for his mother in the soft low tone of his voice. Harvey was no doubt very fond of her and the rest of his family. And as endearing as she found that fondness, it also made her that little more nervous about meeting them. She just prayed to God she made a good impression for Harvey's sake because the last thing she wanted to do was let him down this weekend.
And with that thought, her earlier worries started to creep back in full force and she couldn't control the fingers in her lap as they began to wring together anxiously, her nerves suddenly getting the better of her. Unable to switch them off, Donna turned her head to look out the window, not even noticing the passing scenery as she continued the rest of the journey completely lost in her own thoughts.
She only snapped out of them when twenty minutes later they finally arrived at the hotel. Her mouth twitched with a genuine smile as she saw the large, modern building in front of her. The sun shone down, reflecting off the wooden and glass structure. It looked beautiful and way grander than she had expected making it appear that she would be spending the next five days in sheer luxury.
Donna's face was animated as Harvey pulled into the hotel guest car park. The gravel crunched underneath the tyres as he stopped the car and switched off the engine. He leant back against the seat as he turned his head to look at her, his brown eyes crinkling at the corners as he smiled at her.
"Here we are."
She nodded her head and smiled shyly in return.
"Although we could always change our minds and make a run for it."
As he lightly chuckled at his attempt at humour, Donna watched him closely, noticing Harvey chew on his lip almost anxiously. It seemed like she wasn't the only one whose nerves had gotten the better of her and somehow it comforted her somewhat to know she wasn't alone.
Fuelled by that solidarity, she reached out and touched his hand as it rested on his denim clad leg. It was cold, like a big chunk of ice and she smiled reassuringly at him.
"We could but I don't think it would be a good idea. Not when your mom finally caught up with you."
Harvey chuckled lightly. "You got that right."
But his grin faded as he turned towards the front and sighed. His brow was deeply furrowed.
"Donna, what am I doing?" he suddenly asked her.
Donna looked at him curiously as her hand still rested on top of his, breathing in the faint scent of his cologne. "What do you mean?"
He lifted his shoulder in a shrug and looked at the gatherings outside before turning back to face her. "I mean this whole trying to convince people we're a couple thing. Why am I doing it? I mean, what was I thinking when I lied to my mother in the first place? It's absolutely crazy."
"Yeah but I'm sure you must have had your reasons at the time."
"I guess."
Harvey sighed softly and slowly looked away as his mind reluctantly wandered to Andrea. He knew she was part of the reason for his madness. Although, really who was he kidding? If he was being honest he would confess she was the whole reason why he was doing this. But right now, that reason wasn't making any sense. He was meant to be over her. Who really cared anyway if he attended this stupid wedding alone?
But as Harvey remembered the words she had hastily scribbled to him on a note inside his wedding invitation, he realised that he did care. And he probably cared a lot more than he was prepared to admit to himself.
"Harvey, there's people heading our way. I think they're looking at us."
Donna's voice lifted him out of his funk and Harvey looked out of his window seeing the two familiar faces walking towards them. They waved at him and he lifted his hand in return.
"Just great." he groaned.
He turned towards Donna and smiled apologetically.
"It's my parents." he explained as he sat up straight in his seat and turned towards her. He quickly cleared his throat and smiled. "I guess we're going to do this, then."
Donna nodded and detecting the uncertainty in Harvey's voice, she squeezed his hand gently. "We'll be fine. We can pull this off."
She paused for a moment, her eyes searching his handsome face.
"We can, can't we? Pull this off?"
Harvey's brown eyes were soft and warm as he gently squeezed her fingers. "Honestly? I don't know but I'm going to give it a damn good try."
Donna nodded as she absently wet her lips. "I won't let you down, Harvey. I promise."
He was touched by her words and the sincerity he saw in her eyes. He lightly grazed her slender knuckles with his thumb. "Actually there was never a thought in my mind that you would."
Her pleased smile quickly lit up her face and as Harvey looked into her shining hazel eyes, he felt his earlier nerves start to dissipate and he grinned at her.
"So, Donna, the big question is, are you ready to do this?"
Donna replied with no hesitation. "I'm ready."
"Good. Then let's get this over with before my mother strains her neck trying to get a look in the car."
She laughed as Harvey released her hand and opened the door. As he stepped out onto the gravel, she watched him greet his parents and she let out a slow breath. This was it. There was definitely no turning back now and as Harvey's father smiled in her direction, Donna managed to smile back despite the knots in her stomach. She slowly got out the car and walking round, she saw Harvey smile in her direction. He was holding out his hand to her almost if he sensed she needed the support and she accepted the outstretched palm gratefully. He squeezed it softly before introducing her.
"Mom, Dad, this is Donna."
The small, grey haired woman beamed in her direction as she held out her hand. Donna let go of Harvey's hand and took it. She was pleasantly surprised when Lily pulled her into a hug.
"Donna, it's so nice to meet you."
"You too. Harveys told me a lot about you."
Lily looked over towards her son as she released Donna, raising her eyebrows in his direction. "I hope it's all been good."
Harvey smirked in return as he watched his father hug Donna. "Of course it was. But only because I didn't want to scare her off too soon."
As Lily playfully swatted at her son, Harvey's father turned to Donna who had smiled gently as she felt Harvey reach out and take hold of her hand again.
"You'll have to excuse my wife and my son. They bicker all the time but you get used to it."
Donna grinned. "I'm sure I will."
"Well we'd better get inside and grab some lunch. Lynn and Adam are waiting." Lily announced as she gestured towards the hotel. "You can wait and bring in your bags after lunch."
"Yes Ma'am." said Harvey, giving a mock salute before quickly moving out of the way as Lily went to swat him again. "Hey. Less of the abuse, Mother. We're at a posh hotel. You need to try and behave yourself now."
He chuckled as she glared at him before taking hold of his father's arm and walking back towards the beautiful wood and glass building. He watched them for a second before following on behind them with Donna and turning to smile at her shyly as he lifted up their joined hands.
"This is okay, isn't it? I mean it's not too weird or anything."
Donna slowly shook her head. "It's not weird."
"Because if you feel uncomfortable about anything then I'd rather know." he told her momentarily stopping and letting his brown eyes scan her face carefully.
She quickly reassured him. "I don't feel uncomfortable. Not in the slightest."
"Good. I'm glad."
His gaze fell on hers and for a moment they simply stood there smiling at one another.
"Come on. Get a move on, you two."
Donna laughed as Harvey rolled his eyes at his mother's voice. They continued to walk to the hotel and she suddenly felt disappointed when out of nowhere she felt him drop her hand. She frowned trying hard not to think about why it should bother her so much when she felt his arm wrap around her shoulder and pull her towards him. A shy grin crept across her face as their hips bumped together and her own arm slid around Harvey's waist as they walked into the hotel together. There was nothing awkward about it and it didn't feel the least bit uncomfortable. In fact, it felt like the most natural thing in the world.
